Fathi Malkawi

Introduction

During the last decade, the presence of Islam and Muslims has become a subject of discussion in the national media, a topic of research in strategic studies centers, and part of the official discourse. A few visionary individuals have influenced the development of this Muslim presence during the last few decades; however, more systematic futuristic thinking and long-term planning have become imperative for Muslim intellectuals, activists, and institutions if Muslims are to take their rightful place within the American fabric. The need for such strategic planning has become even more vital since the events of 9/11, as drastic challenges now face Muslims in all walks of life, particularly regarding their children’s education.

This paper has four goals: (1) to address some of the Muslim community’s concerns regarding its children’s education; (2) to reflect upon the role of education in shaping the position of other communities in American history; (3) to argue that the future of Muslim education will be influenced directly by the present realities and future trends within American education in general, and, more importantly, by the Muslim community’s own well-calculated and informed short- and long-term decisions and plans; and (4) to identify some areas in which a well-established knowledge base is critical for making decisions and that serious research is urgently needed to furnish this base.

It is important to make a distinction between Islamic education as prescribed by the Qur’an and the Sunnah and understood by specialized scholars and intellectuals, and Muslim education as practiced in Muslim societies and communities. Eminent Muslim scholars who attended the First World Conference on Muslim Education, held in Makkah in 1977, realized that Muslim countries have consciously adopted the western system of education. They also realized that the corruption and backwardness of Muslim societies, although possibly due in part to external causes, are caused internally and have seriously contributed to a general disarray and inability to discern the full truth lying at the core of the current dilemma. At the heart of these internal causes lies the confusion of the concept of education.1

The distinction between Islamic education and Muslim education on one hand, and between Islamic education and teaching traditional Islamic sciences on the other, is beyond the scope of this paper. However, such a distinction is a rich area for research. Suffice it to say that at this point, Muslim parents and educators need to realize that Islamic schools should adopt a holistic approach to their students’ education, one in which Islamic values and ideals are integrated into all forms of knowledge across the school curriculum, while simultaneously cultivating Islamic attitudes, behaviors, and manners.

Another distinction is the need to develop new insights and experiences relevant to our life in the United States, where much of the traditional literature and understandings developed in Muslim societies may not be relevant. The approach of contemporary Islamic schools in a western secular environment may take a different route from the one that prevailed in earlier Muslim-majority societies, for education in American Islamic schools must relate to the non-Muslim-majority American society. At the same time, this education must relate to the current state of knowledge, issues, and understandings, for:

If Muslim children are to grow up as witnesses to the truth in a non-Muslim society, they need to understand that society and to develop an objective and critical approach so that they can appreciate whatever is good in it, avoid its evils, and reach out to the non-Muslims, presenting the truths of Islam in a way they can understand and relate to.2

Muslim communities in the United States are passing through a period of rapid and turbulent change, the hazards and complexities of which pose serious problems that may lead to despair. Therefore, it is vital to understand the sources of hope, inspiration, and optimism while remaining aware of immediate challenges and threats on a daily basis.

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